Muscular dystonia is an uncontrolled contraction or relaxation of muscle tissue, which is most often seen in infants. Sometimes the disease is diagnosed in adult patients. As a result of such a pathological condition, a person has to take a forced position. This syndrome often affects the limbs.
General description of the disease
According to the ICD-10, muscular dystonia has the code G24. Normally, there should be no voluntary muscle contractions. If the child is born without problems and has no developmental abnormalities, he may experience hypertonicity, which disappears after a few months. Premature babies show muscle weakness - hypotension.
When a child has dystonia, soft tissues do not develop correctly. As a result, muscle atrophy occurs. In addition, he has unpleasant symptoms, pain. An even greater danger to the baby arises if the pathological process extends to the respiratory muscles.
Causes of occurrence
Muscular dystonia happensprimary or secondary. The etiology of its appearance is different. In the first case, the hereditary factor, gene mutations, idiopathic causes affect. Secondary dystonia develops as a result of congenital neurological disorders, external factors. The reasons for the development of pathology are as follows:
- Problems with the functionality of the nervous system.
- Birth injury or difficult pregnancy in the mother, chronic fetal hypoxia.
- Using certain types of medications.
- Hereditary degenerative pathologies of the nervous system.
- Focal damage to the blood vessels of the brain.
- The impact of toxic substances on the body.
- Malignant or benign brain tumor.
- Infectious pathologies.
- Diseases of the heart and blood vessels.
There may be more reasons for the development of muscular dystonia. A thorough diagnosis is required to accurately determine them.
Development stages
Pathology develops gradually. She goes through several stages along the way:
- First. No symptoms yet, but nerve damage is already present.
- Second. The child's sleep is disturbed, he becomes irritable. The baby's arms and legs are constantly bent.
- Third. Physical activity requires a lot of effort from a child. A pain syndrome appears that does not go away even at rest.
- Fourth. The lag in physical development can be seen with the naked eye.eye.
- Fifth. The child's motor skills are significantly deteriorating. Pathological changes in the muscles at this stage are not always reversible.
Muscular dystonia requires an integrated approach to treatment, so you should not hesitate to visit a doctor.
Symptomatics
Symptoms of muscular dystonia in children and adults are somewhat different. The following manifestations can be distinguished:
- In infants, twitching of arms and legs is observed, and this condition does not depend on what exactly they are doing. Characteristic of this disease is the prolonged presence of the fetal position after the birth of the child.
- In children from 2 years old, there is a violation of the turn of the hands, feet, torso. The child constantly walks on toes. It is difficult for him to hold any toys or objects in his hands. If therapy is not started in a timely manner, the baby will lose walking skills, and will also not be able to serve himself in the future.
- Muscular dystonia in adults is manifested in convulsions, stiffness of the affected muscle groups, twisting of the neck and its distortion. The patient's handwriting deteriorates noticeably, he blinks frequently. Pain is constantly present in the muscles, movements of the lower jaw are involuntary. The voice and speech also changes.
Improper treatment of muscular dystonia in infants is fraught with a violation of its physical and mental development. In adult patients, the he alth status will also not improve. Therefore, it is necessary to consult a doctor when the first symptoms of pathology appear.
Disease types
Before starting treatment, it is necessary to consider the types of muscular dystonia. Pathology can be classified as follows:
| Classification factors | Characteristics of pathology |
| Due to occurrence |
|
| By localization |
|
| Depending on severity |
|
| According to the age of the patient |
|
After the causes of the development of the syndrome of muscular dystonia, as well as the form of its development, are determined, you can begin to treat the disease.
Featuresdiagnostics
The presented disease can be confused with other disorders, so the diagnosis should be differential and as accurate as possible. To make a diagnosis of muscular dystonia, you must undergo a thorough examination, including:
- Neurological examination, in which the specialist determines the presence of postures characteristic of the disease.
- Collecting an anamnesis of a woman's pregnancy and childbirth.
- Lab tests to show how good copper metabolism is in the body.
- Electroencephalography, which reveals the presence of functional or organic brain lesions.
- CT and MRI. Such a diagnosis is the most informative and allows you to identify the cause of the development of dystonia.
- Neurosonography.
- Electroneurography.
- Dopplerography of vessels.
The patient needs to consult several specialists: a therapist, a neurologist. If there is muscular dystonia in the baby, then a neonatologist examination is necessary.
Traditional treatment
Therapy must be comprehensive. In addition to medications that improve the functionality of the nervous system, the patient is also prescribed physiotherapy, massage courses. In especially severe cases, surgical intervention is required. As for medicines, the following can be prescribed to the patient:
- Drugs to regulate the neurotransmitter GABA: Baclofen,"Diazepam".
- Dopaminergic drugs: "Levadop", "Tetrabenazine".
- Anticholinergics: Trihexyphenidyl.
Recently, botulinum toxin injections have been used to treat muscular dystonia. In small doses, it helps prevent spasm. However, it will not help to completely get rid of the pathology, since it lasts only a few months. A positive effect is observed only 2-3 days after the start of therapy.
The general course of drug treatment lasts about 1-2 months. It is not recommended to use any drugs on your own, especially for infants.
Surgical intervention involves the implantation of miniature electrodes into certain areas of the brain. They control muscle movements. This type of intervention is only indicated if drug treatment fails.
Using physiotherapy treatments
They also give a positive effect, but they should be used in combination with drug treatment. Baths based on lavender oil or pine needles extract help to relieve spasm. They are especially useful for babies, as they calm the nervous system.
Among the most effective physiotherapy procedures are the following:
- Mud treatment.
- Heat and water treatments.
- Ultrasound therapy.
- Medicated electrophoresis.
- DeathDarsonvalem.
Non-traditional methods can also be used: acupuncture. Often, specialists prescribe a kinesitherapy course for children. It should be prescribed only by a neurologist. Before that, it is worth finding out the individual characteristics of the child's body.
Folk remedies
You can include folk recipes in complex therapy, but it is better to discuss this issue with your doctor. For babies, decoctions of herbs are useful, which are added to the bath, which helps to relax the body.
For adult patients, hirudotherapy will be useful. Here, the blood of a leech is considered a healing agent. It has a lot of useful substances. To relieve tension, you can use the herb motherwort, succession, pharmacy chamomile, peppermint.
Massage and exercise therapy
Massage for muscular dystonia, as well as exercise therapy, has a positive effect on the general condition of the baby's body. The following gymnastics is performed daily with the child:
- Swaying the patient on the fitball, as well as in the fetal position on the hands.
- Limb flexion.
- Water aerobics.
As for massage, this method of dealing with the disease is the safest. At first, all movements are made by a specialist, but the mother, who was present at the procedure, can eventually carry them out at home on her own. Stroking, rubbing and kneading the baby should be done carefully. Massage for an adult patient is also indicated. The choice of movements will dependon the form and degree of neglect of the disease.
There are certain conditions required for the massage:
- The room should be ventilated, and the temperature in it should not be less than 22 degrees.
- It is better to carry out the procedure an hour after eating.
- Hands must be clean. Additionally, they should be applied with a special oil or cream.
- If the patient experiences severe pain or discomfort, the procedure should be stopped.
The duration of the procedure does not exceed 15 minutes. Massage should be done regularly. Only in this case will it be possible to achieve a positive effect.
Possible Complications
The presented pathology is dangerous for its consequences. The most severe of these is cerebral palsy, which cannot be completely eliminated. This pathology completely changes the patient's lifestyle.
Prolonged violation of muscle tone has a negative effect on the spinal column in particular and the supporting system as a whole. Dystonia causes the following complications:
- Clubfoot.
- Lameness and altered gait as a result.
- Curvature of the spinal column.
- Pathology of the general physical and mental development of the child in the future.
- Persistent pain that can only be relieved with drugs.
- Mental retardation.
This is only a small number of complications that are possible due to muscular dystonia. To prevent their occurrence, it is necessary to contact specialists in time and passtreatment.
Prevention of pathology
There is no specific prevention that could 100% protect against muscular dystonia. However, some rules are worth following:
- Avoid the influence of negative factors on the fetus during a woman's pregnancy.
- Give up bad habits.
- Treat any infectious or inflammatory processes that may affect the nervous system in time.
- Get regular check-ups, and not just during pregnancy.
- If there is the slightest suspicion of damage to the muscles or nervous system, you should definitely consult a doctor.
Muscular dystonia is a complex disease that is fraught with serious consequences. Not all of them can be eliminated, so the symptoms cannot be ignored.
